NYSE moves to scrap Chinese oil company

The Big Board’s regulatory arm determined that Cnooc was “no longer suitable for listing” in light of the executive order signed by Mr Trump in November. The order has remained in effect under Biden’s administration.

Cnooc, one of the major Chinese state-controlled oil and gas producers, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The company will continue to list shares on the Hong Kong stock exchange even after the NYSE has delisted. But US investors currently holding NYSE-listed shares of Cnooc may struggle to convert them to foreign stocks, and many will choose to sell in the coming days. Stocks listed on the NYSE fell 2.8% to $ 118.74 on Friday.

In January, the NYSE dropped three Chinese telecommunications companies that were under Mr Trump’s executive order, following a baffling back-and-forth in which the Big Board first said it would drop them from the list, then pulled them back, then rebuild itself. to reverse. People familiar with the case blamed the NYSE’s reversals on the confusing guidance provided by the outgoing administration.

Some US investors sold their Chinese telecom shares at a loss before the order took effect in January, while others weren’t tied to stocks they couldn’t sell or transfer due to securities trading restrictions.

Cnooc was not on the first list of Chinese companies to fall under Mr. Trump’s order when he signed it in November, but it was added later, which is why the NYSE has so far taken no action to scrap Cnooc.

Mr. Trump’s order prohibited Americans from trading securities of dozens of Chinese companies, although only a few have a significant presence in the US capital markets. The purpose of the order was to prevent US investors’ money from helping Beijing’s efforts to modernize its military and security services. It came amid a series of other last-minute measures by the Trump administration that enacted harsh policies against China before President Biden took office.

Earlier Friday, The Wall Street Journal reported that the Biden administration plans to enact a Trump-era rule aimed at combating Chinese technology threats next month, amid objections from US companies.

That rule – which is separate from the executive order that led to the NYSE’s banning – allows the Department of Commerce to ban technology-related business transactions that it believes pose a threat to national security, as part of an effort to Secure U.S. supply chains.

Write to Alexander Osipovich at [email protected]